AKMV Renewal of temporary residence permit Slovakia
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QUESTION
We are two persons and have a s.r.o. company in Slovakia, our resident permit will expire in mid May 2019, so I have a few question to ask: 1. As our company didn’t have any income in past year (because of some problems with people who managed our company), can we still renew our resident permits ? 2. Do we need to be present in Slovakia and have a real resident address to renew our resident permits? Thank you in advance.
ANSWER:
The application for the renewal of your residence permit has to be submitted to the foreign police in Slovakia before the residence permit expires. You will have to submit the application personally, you can hire a lawyer to represent you in the whole process but still your personal presence when submitting the application is required.
As you are both directors of the Slovak LLC (s.r.o.), you have to prove a net profit (after taxes) for the past year in the amount of at least sixty times the subsistence minimum – which is currently at least the amount of around 12.400 EUR. If you are both representatives at the same company, this amount remains the same for both of you.
The main reason when you applied for a residence permit for the purpose of doing business was running real business activities. If you had no income, that means that you did not run the business in Slovakia, which means for the foreign police and according the law that the residence permit renewal may be declined.
Also the residential address has to be real. The foreign police officer can go (and mostly they do) personally check the accommodation before they decide about your application. Accommodation can be proved either by letter of ownership as well as by the rental agreement.
The foreign police officers when dealing with your application will also investigate whether you were living in Slovakia for at least half of the year. If not, they can again decide to reject your application.
JUDr. Veronika Michalíková, MBA QUESTION
I have a residence permit for the purpose of business as a director of a Slovak LLC. What is the required profit amount to be demonstrated when renewing the temporary residence permit?
ANSWER:
In accordance with § 34 paragraph 7 of the Act on the Residence of Foreigners: “A third-country national is required to demonstrate, in the application for the renewal of a temporary residence permit under § 22 paragraph 1 letter b), a net profit of the business company or cooperative, on behalf of which they act, for the previous tax period of at least sixty times the subsistence minimum. If it concerns a third-country national whose business plan has been assessed by the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic as an innovative project, the required net profit is at least twenty times the subsistence minimum; if they did not conduct business for the entire previous tax period, they must demonstrate a net profit of five times the subsistence minimum for each month of residence in the previous tax period. If a third-country national acts on behalf of several business companies or cooperatives, the net profit requirement from the previous sentence must be met by at least one of the companies or cooperatives on behalf of which they act. If the third-country national was not authorized to act on behalf of a company or cooperative in the previous tax period, they are required to demonstrate financial security for the business activity amounting to thirty times the subsistence minimum by submitting a bank statement according to § 32 paragraph 7.”
As of July 1, 2024, in the Slovak Republic, the subsistence minimum is 273.99 EUR. The net profit after tax of the company must be at least 16,439.40 EUR.
JUDr. Veronika Michalíková, MBA QUESTION
Renewal of temporary residence for the purpose of employment if the foreigner studied at a university in Slovakia
I studied at a Slovak university, which I successfully graduated from, found employment, and now, after two years, I would like to renew my residence permit for the purpose of employment. Do I have to apply for a work permit from the Labour Office?
ANSWER:
According to Section 131k, Paragraph 1 of Act No. 404/2011 Coll. on the Residence of Foreigners: “The validity of a temporary residence, permanent residence, or tolerated residence, which would otherwise expire during the extraordinary situation declared in connection with the mass influx of foreigners into the territory of the Slovak Republic caused by the armed conflict on the territory of Ukraine (hereinafter referred to as ‘extraordinary situation’), is extended until the expiration of two months from the revocation of the extraordinary situation; this does not apply to a third-country national whose application for the renewal of temporary residence was rejected. In connection with the extension of the validity of the residence according to the previous sentence, the police department, with the consent of the Ministry of the Interior and upon the request of a third-country national, shall issue a residence document with a validity specified by a concrete date, if necessary for the performance of the purpose of the residence.”
This means that the residence of these persons has not lapsed and continues to be valid. From the information provided by the OCP PZ Bratislava (Foreign Police) info-line, it follows that the exception according to Section 131k also applies to foreigners who have temporarily left the territory of the Slovak Republic, even in cases where one of the persons is currently abroad.
A person located abroad may enter the territory of the Slovak Republic, but it is recommended to fly directly to Slovakia. If they were to fly to Vienna, for example, there is a risk they might not be admitted to the Schengen area because the system may evaluate their residence as invalid. In the event they are detained at an airport abroad, they can refer to the provision of Section 131k of the Act on the Residence of Foreigners, and if that does not help, we recommend contacting a Slovak embassy.
The Foreign Police Department can issue a confirmation of the application of Section 131k, but only in person. It is not possible to arrange this remotely or through a third party. The OCP recommends trying to request confirmation through a Slovak embassy as well, but with the warning that the embassy might not be able to help in every case. Neither a spouse nor another person in Slovakia can request such a confirmation on behalf of the person concerned.
It is not possible to apply for a visa because the persons concerned are listed in the system as residence holders according to Section 131k. For this reason, a visa application would be refused.
It follows from the above that residence according to Section 131k of the Act on the Residence of Foreigners is still valid, even if the foreigner has temporarily left Slovakia. Entry into Slovakia is possible, but it is recommended to fly directly to a Slovak airport. Confirmation of the continuation of residence can only be obtained in person at the OCP or possibly through an embassy. A visa application is not permissible because a valid residence appears in the system.
We recommend that the foreigner concerned contacts a Slovak embassy abroad, flies directly to Slovakia, personally requests confirmation according to Section 131k from the OCP upon return, and subsequently submits an application for the renewal of residence as soon as possible.
If you find yourself in a similar situation and need help communicating with the foreign police, the embassy, or with arranging translations and documents, the law firm AKMV will be happy to assist you.
JUDr. Veronika Michalíková, MBA